Things done by Moonlight
by Broken-and-fallen
Summary: Theres a twinkle and a shine in his eye and Balthier knows, Vaan's a Sky Pirate now. SPOILERS FOR THE END OF FFXII. I have not played Revenant Wings! This is my take on it! Balthier/Vaan. Sequel to Sand and Dust.


Things done by Moonlight, or: If you Love Something, Let it Go

When they met again, after a chase not unlike cat-and-mouse, which both Fran and Penelo thought immature and annoying but Vaan and Balthier did not, Balthier had to admit he was surprised.

He had thought himself to have gained the upper hand, losing Vaan in those craggy mountains before leaving the _Strahl _among the trees so Fran may wander. So when he himself went for a refreshing walk to stretch his limbs and collect some spring water he was startled when the click of a cocked gun caught his attention.

Sighing dramatically he stood and winced at the pop in his back. And there he was, leaning against one of the barrels many travellers left for their kin full of Potions and Elixirs alike, clothes streaming with small rivers of sand and skin as dark and dusty as ever. His eyes were different though, more bright, an amused sparkle in them as Vaan tilted his head and tapped a tapered finger gently against the trigger of _Altair_.

Balthier had to smile smugly to himself, for the change of attitude in the boy was because of a reason only too clear.

Vaan was a Sky Pirate now.

"Caught me then, have you boy?"

"Wasn't too hard," Vaan smirked. "Your piloting was shoddy."

He merely raised his eyebrows when Balthier whipped out a quick knife and knocked the gun out of his hands, where it fell into the spring with a quiet _plop_.

"How did you know if I wasn't letting you catch up?" he grinned.

"How do you know if I didn't let it fall?" the Sky Pirate replied.

"Touché," Balthier murmured, and pulled Vaan in for a kiss.

--

Fran returned to the cockpit and immediately groaned, holding a hand against her forehead. Vaan's head appeared above the head of the Pilot's chair, slightly flushed and with a grin from ear-to-ear.

"Hello Fran!" he said, "Good to see you!"

"Balthier, _please_," she sighed. "You have quarters for this. Hello Vaan."

Vaan was lifted slightly onto the arm of the chair – and Fran thanked everything his pants were still on – so Balthier could shift up and look around the back of it.

"Yes but you see Fran, Vaan has to apologise."

"For what?" Fran and Vaan asked at once, both just as suspiciously.

"Well," Balthier said smugly, waving out the cockpit window to the blonde desert girl striding towards the _Strahl _looking very unamused, "Vaan called your piloting shoddy."

He could only chuckle to himself as chaos erupted in the cockpit as Fran _rounded _on Vaan and Vaan started yelling at Balthier about not taking sexual banter seriously, while Penelo stormed in (how had she gotten in?) and started yelling at Vaan because her precious _Revenant Wings _was parked on the edge of a bloody cliff because he was too impatient to find a proper field and to _get off Balthier's lap this instant_.

Ah, Balthier thought, life was good.

--

"So where have you been?" Vaan murmured, by candlelight in a small hut by the Phon Coast. They were laying in a hammock padded with blankets, and he felt himself drowsed by the rocking warmth and the sound of warm rain outside.

"Missed me?" Balthier asked, amused. They were sharing a bottle of Bhujerban Madhu, the candlelight through it casting a hollow green light over Vaan's face as he propped his head on Balthier's chest, leaning over for another sip. Balthier accommodated him, tipping it slightly to the left and then his head to place a slow kiss against the dark temple.

"Only if you missed me," Vaan replied quietly, kissing him back. The windows of the hut shuddered in the heavy wind, and wind whistled through the cracks in the wood. The floorboards were littered with sand blowing through under the door, and Vaan's legs were coated with it, scratching against Balthier's own whenever he shifted.

Sitting up Balthier ignored Vaan's unintelligible sound of protest and pulled the boys legs out, brushing the sand off them. Vaan sighed and made himself comfortable, balancing the Madhu on his chest and folding one arm behind his head.

"Where have you been?" Balthier asked casually, fingertips finding a purple scar on the back of Vaan's shin. That would have hurt, it looked deep. He looked up in time to see Vaan's eyes close as he sighed gently.

"Everywhere in the world," he whispered, and slowly fell asleep.

--

They return to Rabanastre. _Only for a short while_, Balthier promises Vaan, _then I am off again_. Vaan doesn't ask to come, he doesn't need to, and Balthier knows he will anyway, if not in the _Strahl _then in his own ship, following on the lingering wind.

Fran makes friends with the Viera in the Bazaar, and she takes to walking with her while they express their annoyance of Humes at great lengths. Balthier has chosen not to interrupt lest he would be included in the conversation. Vaan and Penelo briefly help Migelo with a few odd jobs, so Balthier spends his time in the inn drinking and soaking in the few days of relaxation. Picking up news of Ashe and Larsa amuses him, seeing how far they've come in such a short time.

The night before he plans to leave, Vaan comes to Balthier's room and takes him away, to Lowtown where the children are, and they dance, just for Balthier (though others come to watch) and Vaan uses an old peach scarf that looks as though its seen better days.

Afterwards, Balthier promises to stay two more days.

--

When the time came for Balthier to leave again, on some harebrained adventure (rumours of a treasure in the sea), he asked Vaan if he would come.

"No," Vaan smiled, walking in from the warmth of the streets to the cool of the airship hanger. "I'm not an apprentice, Balthier."

"So you won't come with me." Balthier mocked a pout. "Whatever shall I do without you tinkering with the controls, leaving half eaten fruit around, not washing the dishes, _piles _of clothes.."

Vaan cut him off by looping a scarf around his neck and kissing him deeply.

"You won't come," Balthier repeated, sombre.

"No," Vaan whispered, leaving the cool and returning to the sun and the warmth.

--

The scarf is tied to the wing of the _Strahl_, and welded there with metal by Balthier's request, though Fran doesn't ask why and complies quietly. It flutters alongside the window freely in the breeze and never comes off.

--

It's the fifth night of the journey and Balthier is collecting spring water. The cool of a blade is rested against the back of his throat, along with the familiar chuckle.

"You do like to drink, don't you master Sky Pirate."

Balthier stands and smiles.

"Depends on what's for drinking," he murmurs. Tawny eyes twinkle through the darkness.

"You came with me," Balthier admonishes. "Liar."

Though he wonders would Vaan be a desert child if he didn't. And if he wasn't a desert child would he dance, and if he didn't dance would Balthier have ever gotten the chance to spend warm nights with him and dream of a sandstorm.

"Would you love me if I didn't?" Vaan asks, and they kiss and all Balthier can think of is _no_.

FIN 


End file.
